The taxi of the Boeing Starliner crew returned to Earth from the International Space Station on Wednesday, completing a repeated test flight before NASA astronauts boarded.
Key points:
- The return flight from the International Space Station was unmanned
- The success of the mission took place two and a half years after the first unsuccessful landing
- Boeing launcher joins already tested SpaceX rockets to help NASA transport astronauts
It was a quick return trip: the Starliner capsule parachuted into the New Mexico desert just four hours after leaving the lab in orbit, with air cushions connected to cushion the landing.
However, the crew did not seem to care about the short flight: there was only one mannequin on board.
Aside from propeller failures and cooling system problems, Starliner seemed to get its big-bet cruise, two and a half years after the first failed attempt.
Flight controllers in Houston applauded and applauded the bullfight landing.
“It’s great to have this amazing test flight behind us,” said Steve Stich, director of NASA’s commercial crew program.
The success of the mission took place two and a half years after it was first attempted.
He described the demonstration as “extremely successful”, with all the goals achieved.
From these first results, NASA astronauts will approach for a trip to the space station, perhaps at the end of the year.
The space agency has long wanted two competing US companies to carry astronauts for additional insurance, as it drastically reduced its reliance on Russia for space travel to and from the space station.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX is already the established leader, launching astronauts from 2020 and even tourists.
SpaceX crew capsules splash off the Florida coast, while the Boeing Starliner returns to the vast, desolate White Sands Army missile field in New Mexico.
Boeing abandoned its first attempt to reach the space station in 2019, after software bugs left the capsule in the wrong orbit and nearly condemned it.
The company fixed the defects and tried again last summer, but the corroded valves stopped the countdown.
After further repairs, Starliner finally left Cape Canaveral last Thursday and docked at the space station on Friday.
Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to search, up and down arrows for volume. Boeing’s Starliner space capsule was successfully launched on May 20th
The station’s astronauts tested Starliner’s computer and communication systems during their five days on the space station.
They also unloaded hundreds of pounds of groceries and other supplies that flew into the Boeing capsule, then filled it with empty air tanks and other discarded equipment.
A folded U.S. flag sent by Boeing was left behind, to be retrieved by Starliner’s first crew.
“We’re a little sad to see her leave,” station astronaut Bob Hines said on the radio as the capsule flew.
Along the way was the Starliner test dummy: Rosie the Rocketeer, a takeoff from World War II Rosie the Riveter.
Repairs and renovations cost Boeing nearly $ 600 million.
Rosie the Rocketeer, a space-age version of World War II Rosie the Riveter, was the only passenger on board. (Boeing)
AP